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Fact check: Did Evan Jenkins support Hillary Clinton and cap-and-trade?
Evan Jenkins
October 31, 2017
By Amée LaTour
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and Rep. Evan Jenkins are running in the Republican primary on May 8, 2018, for the chance to challenge Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in the Senate election next November. Morrisey's campaign claimed in a press release that Jenkins has a "liberal record of supporting Hillary Clinton and voting for cap-and-trade."[1]
Ballotpedia requested evidence for the claim from the Morrisey campaign, but the evidence the campaign provided did not substantiate the claim.
The Morrisey campaign’s evidence of Jenkins’ record of supporting Clinton was a news article that noted the attendance of then-state Sen. Jenkins at a 2007 Clinton campaign event, six years before he switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party.[2] A spokeswoman also provided a voter registration document indicating that Jenkins voted in the Democratic primary in 2008, but the document does not indicate his choice of candidate.[3]
The campaign's press release cited Jenkins’ vote in favor of a renewable portfolio standard for West Virginia but did not provide evidence that he supported a cap-and-trade program, nor did Ballotpedia find evidence of such a vote.[4][5]
Background
Evan Jenkins is a GOP member of the U.S. House of Representatives representing West Virginia's 3rd District. He was first elected in 2014. Jenkins switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican on July 31, 2013, when he also announced he would challenge Nick Rahall (D) for the House seat.[6] Jenkins served in the state Senate from 2002 to 2014 and in the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1994 to 2000.
Patrick Morrisey was elected as the state's attorney general in 2012, becoming the first Republican attorney general in the state since 1933. Morrisey previously served as the deputy staff director and chief healthcare counsel to the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Purported support for Clinton
As evidence of Jenkins’ purported support for Clinton, the Morrisey campaign cites a Herald-Dispatch article from July 27, 2007, that reports his attending her campaign event at West Virginia State University, in Charleston.[1] The article quotes Jenkins as saying, "Any time you have a presidential candidate from any party come to the state, it's a time to rally the troops and energize those involved in the political process. It's important not to miss an opportunity to hear a candidate speak about the issues that matter to the people in this state."[2]
The Morrisey campaign also electronically shared an image of Jenkins' voter history from West Virginia’s voter registration system, which indicates that he voted in the 2008 Democratic primary but does not identify for whom he voted.[3]
A spokesman for the Jenkins campaign did not reveal who Jenkins voted for in the 2008 Democratic primary but did say he voted for John McCain in the general election.[7]
Cap-and-trade
The Morrisey campaign's press release claims that Jenkins supported cap-and-trade because he voted in favor of West Virginia’s House Bill 103 (HB 103), the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard.[4][5][8]
Passed by the legislature in 2009, HB 103 required utilities to generate a quota of electricity from renewable sources (i.e., solar, wind, and hydropower) and alternative sources (i.e., coal using carbon capture technology and natural gas). It also allowed utilities to trade or sell credits to meet these standards and imposed fines on utilities for non-compliance.[5]
Cap-and-trade typically refers to a program for controlling carbon emissions by rationing the overall amount of emissions available and allowing businesses to trade or sell emissions credits. A renewable fuel standard (which HB 103 would have established) is not based on a fixed reduction in emissions. It is based on a fixed proportion of renewable (and in the case of HB 103, alternative) fuels used to generate power.[9][10]
Jenkins also cosponsored legislation in 1997 that would have established a voluntary emissions banking and trading program to incentivize progress toward meeting National Ambient Air Quality Standards (federal air quality standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency) and reducing or preventing hazardous air contaminants.[11][12] The bill was never voted upon.[13]
Conclusion
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and Rep. Evan Jenkins are running in the Republican primary for the chance to challenge incumbent Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in the 2018 election. Morrisey's campaign claimed in a press release that Jenkins has a "liberal record of supporting Hillary Clinton and voting for cap-and-trade."[1]
The evidence provided to Ballotpedia by the Morrisey campaign to support its claim did not document that Jenkins supported Clinton or cap-and-trade.[2][3][5]
See also
- United States Senate election in West Virginia (May 8, 2018 Republican primary)
- United States Senate election in West Virginia, 2018
- Fact check: Was Senate candidate Patrick Morrisey NeverTrump?
- Party control of West Virginia state government
Sources and Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Patrick Morrisey U.S. Senate, "Morrisey Campaign Launches Digital Ad Campaign," August 2, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ballotpedia paid a fee to obtain access to the article in the Herald-Dispatch archives.The Herald-Dispatch, "Digital archives: Cabell Dems ready for visit," July 27, 2007
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Amée LaTour, "Email communication with Morrisey campaign spokeswoman Nachama Soloveichik," October 18, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Amée LaTour, "Email communication with Office of the Senate Clerk," October 18, 2017
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 West Virginia Legislature, "Bill Status - 2009 1st Special Session, House Bill 103," accessed October 18, 2017
- ↑ WSAZ, "UPDATE: Sen. Jenkins Switching Parties, Announces Candidacy," July 31, 2017
- ↑ Amée LaTour, "Email communication with Jenkins campaign spokesman Andy Seré," October 18, 2017
- ↑ On February 3, 2015, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed a repeal of the Alternative and Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard. West Virginia Legislature, "Bill Status - 2015 Regular Session, House Bill 2001," accessed October 18, 2017
- ↑ The bill would have required utilities to generate at least 10 percent of their electricity from qualifying sources each year between 2015 and 2019, 15 percent between 2020 and 2025, and 25 percent thereafter.
- ↑ United States Environemental Protection Agency, "What is Emissions Trading?" updated April 10, 2017
- ↑ Under the federal Clean Air Act, states must have a plan to meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Environmental Protection Agency, "What is a State Implementation Plan?" accessed November 1, 2017
- ↑ West Virginia Legislature, "H.B. 2476," accessed November 1, 2017
- ↑ West Virginia Legislature, "Bill Status - 1997 Regular Session, House Bill 2476," accessed November 1, 2017
Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to revaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about fact-checking, click here.
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